Before the 2026-27 school year officially begins, Crestwood students will have the opportunity to measure their physical and mental health. Crestwood High School will partner with Akron Children’s Hospital to host Summer Wellness Day on July 30 at Crestwood High School, beginning at 9 a.m.
“Students can get check-ups, they can get their sports physical, we also have students who work who can get their employment physicals.” Red Devils’ Athletic Director Brittany Dye told The Weekly Villager on July 23. “Akron Children’s Hospital can also do immunizations and discuss any other health care concerns with students during that time.”
According to Dye, for the last several years the Crestwood School District has worked with Akron Children’s Hospital to host student physicals and check-ups at Crestwood High School, giving student-athletes the opportunity to undergo their physical without having to worry about schedule constraints.
She added that all student-athletes in the Crestwood School District are required to receive an annual physical before they can be cleared to participate in any athletics.
Dye noted that the physicals are not limited to student athletes and are available to all students who may want to schedule a physical on that day. The Crestwood School District has provided a QR code for families to scan and schedule an appointment at the High School.
“It is difficult to get into appointments, and this allows our students to do it during a time where they don’t have to miss school. It is in the summer, so we won’t have to worry about them missing school or leaving early,” she said.
Dye added that the costs are billed directly to families but offer financial help as well.
She lauded the partnership with Akron Children’s Hospital, which existed well before she assumed the role of Athletic Director at her alma matter.
“Akron Children’s Hospital has been organized,” Dye acknowledged. “It helps us tremendously because we just give them a space, we open our school, and they bring their team and they handle everything. It also gives us a great opportunity to see the families before fall if we need anything completed on our end.”
Dye called the day a one-stop shop for students in need of a standard sports physical or medical physical because they have not had one in a while.
She stressed that if a student-athlete does not attend Summer Wellness Day to receive a physical, that does not automatically disqualify them from participating in Crestwood athletics provided they get physicals from their family physicians.
She added that the hospital also will offer students the chance to take a physical during school hours, as they can schedule an appointment on school grounds and the Hospital will send a nurse to conduct the physical.
Dye said that although the primary function of Summer Wellness Day for Crestwood High School is to provide students with the time to take a physical, it also serves as a day of informative medical sessions.
“For the students who need more or have questions, I think Akron Children’s does a great job of connecting, whether they need a referral to someone else or they need a screening or another test,” she said. “This is the first step in getting that and if we didn’t have this wellness day, those questions might never be answered, those connections may not be made, those referrals may never have happened so this day is a good day to open the door for all of those things.”
Dye noted how the event is a good example of the Village of Mantua’s caring nature, providing a day of medical wellness that might not otherwise be possible.
“I think it is a great way to show the partnership between our school district and community and how important schools can be for servicing students,” she added. “Public schools’ matter in every community.”
